Video: Gang member fleeing police kills self

Officers landed several shots in the suspect’s shoulder, but his cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot to the head

By PoliceOne Staff

SISTERS, Ore. — New dash cam from four Oregon State cruisers shows the pursuit of an armed man fleeing police before officers fired and the suspect turned his gun on himself.

William E. Hall, 34, pulled a gun as police approached his vehicle, prompting Major Travis Hampton to grab his sidearm and yell, “Gun!” as he backed away from the suspect’s vehicle, according to KGW.

According to the district attorney’s report, Hall squeezed the trigger of his firearm as if trying to fire at the officer, unsuccessfully.

Hall then fled, prompting police to pursue him. Officers deployed a spike strip to flatten his tires, then pinned his vehicle between the cruisers, according to the report.

Hall could be seen in his vehicle brandishing a gun again. Officers fired several shots at his vehicle.

According to a ruling by Deschutes County District Attorney Patrick Flaherty, Hampton and Senior Trooper William Duran were "fully justified" in shooting at Hall.

Hall suffered several gunshots to the shoulder from the officers, but his cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot to the head.

Hall had recently served roughly six years in prison for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, according to the report. Investigators said that during his time in prison, he was a lieutenant in the Aryan Brotherhood, a white supremacist prison gang.